 Towards the end of the 15th century women's head-dresses became smaller, more convenient, and less picturesque.The gable hood, a stiff and elaborate head-dress, emerged around 1480 and was popular among elder ladies up until the mid 16th century.Women of the merchant classes in Northern Europe wore modified versions of courtly hairstyles, with coifs or caps, veils, and wimples of crisp linen (often with visible creases from ironing and folding).